Creative Director: Shannon Pettini
Art Director: Chris Averbeck
Post Producer: Steve Fait
Editor (:20 second spot only): Chadwick Nelson
Graphics: Chris Averbeck
Animation: Kipp Crawford
Design Assistant: Patrick Burke

Post Production Services: Splice Here
Creative Director: Shannon Pettini
Design / Animation: Chris Averbeck, Kipp Crawford
Assistant Editors: Kevin Russell, Cassie Wentlandt
Post Producer: Lynn Anderson
Composer: David J Russ
Sound Mix: David J Russ

Premiering at the Minneapolis/St. Paul International Film Festival on Friday, April 13 at 7p at St. Anthony Main Theaters.
For tickets go the festival website: http://www.mspfilmfest.org/2012/content/tickets-and-passes.

For more information about the film visit their facebook page.

Director: Joe Dressel
Producer: Chris Cummings

Post Production Services: Splice Here
Colorist: Michael Sandness
Graphics: Brian Olson
Sound Mix: Kelly Pieklo
Editor (Trailer): Cassie Wentlandt
Post Producer: Steve Fait

Splice Here® has completed post-production, typography and graphic animation, Lustre color, and Smoke finish on the ITVS-funded documentary “The Reconstruction of Asa Carter” from Director Marco Ricci. Based in New York City, Ricci also collaborated with the Splice team on his previous feature film, “Wedding Bros.”

Ricci’s new doc, “The Reconstruction of Asa Carter,” explores the life and legacy of Forest Carter, the best-selling author of “The Outlaw Josey Wales” and “The Education of Little Tree,” a memoir about his life as a Cherokee orphan, who was later revealed to be Asa (Ace) Carter, a notorious white supremacist. To view the trailer for the film, which premieres nationally on public broadcasting on April 3rd, and locally on TPT/Channel 2 at Noon on April 8th.

Producer/Director Marco Ricci first met Splice Partner/Editor Clayton Condit in 2007 at the IFP (Independent Filmmaker Project) Rough Cut Lab, where they each participated with separate film projects. Condit suggested that Ricci work with his post team at Splice in Minneapolis. Although at first apprehensive about a long-distance collaboration on post, Ricci says it turned out to be a fantastic decision.

“Everyone has the same tools these days, so it’s ultimately about the people you choose to work with,” explains Ricci. “At Splice, they are incredibly talented and they treat you like family. We’ve developed a very comfortable relationship in terms of completing the post-production on my projects and developing new ideas that always serve the films well. In New York, as an independent filmmaker, sometimes you feel like a lower priority. It is the exact opposite at Splice. When I travel to Minneapolis, I can be completely focused on my film for four or five days, which is great. Michael is a versatile talent, backed by Lynn as a strong producer. Then, Carl is like a knight of post, always riding in with the exact answer we need because deliverables for television now are so complex.”

Ricci recounts one time during post-production on “Wedding Bros” (Splice completed color, visual effects, and end credits for the film) when they ran into some trouble with a piece of source material. “Clayton said he would jump on a plane to New York to sort it out,” recalls Ricci. “That was the over-the-top moment when I was really impressed with the dedication Splice offered me as a client and a filmmaker.”

“I first got to know Marco when I worked with him on ‘Wedding Bros.’” Colorist Michael Sandness explained, “so, when I was in New York on another project, I stopped by to visit and he showed me the rough cut of the documentary. I was immediately drawn in to the story and saw how we could collaborate on the project to take care of some of the technical issues, make it look great and manage delivery, allowing Marco to put all his energy and focus on the storytelling. It’s a great creative relationship and we always look forward to working with him.”

For more information about the film, go to:
http://www.reconstructionofasacarter.com/
http://www.itvs.org/films/reconstruction-of-asa-carter

Director: Marco Ricci
Director of Photography: Peter Olsen
Executive Producer: Laura Browder
Producer: Douglas Newman
Co-Producer: Michael Fix

Post Producer: Lynn Anderson
Colorist: Michael Sandness
Colorist Assist: Joanna Day Fuerst
Assistant Editor: Kevin Russell
Flame Artist / Online: Michael Sandness
Design / Graphics: Chris Averbeck, Kipp Crawford
3D Artist: Mike Hoium

Splice Here® announced the addition of Colorist Alexis Van Hurkman to the company’s talent roster. Hurkman comes to Splice having recently moved from New York, where he color graded a wide diversity of projects including commercials, narrative and documentary features, shorts, and experimental pieces.

To view Colorist Alexis Van Hurkman’s reel, go to: http://splice.tv/category/color-finish/alexis-van-hurkman/

“I have known Alexis for many years and he brings a lot of experience and passion for the art of color,” says Splice Sr. Colorist Michael Sandness. “His addition to our team aligns with Splice’s mission to be continually improving and finding new approaches to turn out high-quality work. We have already begun to collaborate on projects and look forward to a strong partnership.”

An incredibly versatile talent, Van Hurkman has color corrected high-end commercials, as well as television programming that has aired on The History Channel, The Learning Channel, BBC Four, and WNET. Van Hurkman has color graded features and shorts that have played at the Telluride, Sundance, Tribeca, Hamptons, and Amsterdam Film Festivals, among many others. Additionally, video art pieces Hurkman has worked on have been exhibited at the New York Museum of Modern Art (MOMA), the Whitney Museum of American Art, and San Francisco’s Yerba Buena Center for the Arts.

“I’m thrilled to collaborate with Splice on national commercials, television programming, and independent film projects,” explains Van Hurkman, ”I’ve been very impressed by Splice; it’s a full-service post-production company in an era of small boutiques, and I appreciate its extensive talent roster and formidable infrastructure, as well as its emphasis on high-end projects. This is a great opportunity for me to work on a diversity of national commercials, television, and independent films, while retaining my personal collaborations with video artists and my own creative projects.”

Beyond his impressive work as a Colorist, Van Hurkman also directs. His feature film “Four Weeks, Four Hours” screened at Manhattan’s NewFilmmakers series, and the Colorado Breckenridge, Salento Italy, Portland Longbaugh, Toronto ReelHeART, Hollywood FAIF, and San Fernando Valley Film Festivals. He is currently developing “Starship Detritus,” an animated science fiction series.

A published writer of several books in the field of color correction and post-production, Van Hurkman’s increasingly popular “Color Correction Handbook: Professional Techniques for Video and Cinema” (Peachpit Press) has been called “as close as we’re going to get to a standard textbook for the world of color correction.” Van Hurkman has also worked behind the scenes of some of the most popular post-production software in use, having updated the DaVinci Resolve 8 user manual on behalf of Blackmagic/DaVinci, and written numerous reference materials for Apple including “Final Cut Studio: Workflows,” and the user manuals for Apple Color, Shake 4, and Final Cut Pro versions 2 through 4. On behalf of RED DIGITAL CINEMA, he also wrote and updated three versions of the RED Final Cut Studio workflows guide. 

Lastly, Van Hurkman enjoys opportunities to teach and present. He’s taught grading seminars for the Graduate Film Division at NYC’s Columbia University, has spoken on Digital Color Management for Film and Video at NAB, and has done numerous color correction presentations worldwide at SuperMeets, DV Expos, the After Effects NYC and Mopictive users groups, NRK, Norway’s Broadcast Mountain symposium, Sweden’s Dramatiska Institutet, and many other user’s groups and venues.

Splice Here®’s Carl Jacobs spent a large part of last year editing the popular new IMAX film “Space Junk 3D.” Collaborating closely with Director Melissa Butts of Melrae Pictures, the expansive project put the Splice team and the full-service postproduction company to the test for the unique film, which hopes to raise awareness of the serious orbital debris issue to ensure the future of space exploration and satellite communications.

To view the trailer and check theater locations: http://www.spacejunk3d.com

The 38-minute film “Space Junk 3D” opened in IMAX® and other giant screen theaters in both 2D and 3D in January. The movie is the first to explore the exponentially expanding ring of manmade debris that threatens the safety of our planet’s orbits. Narrated by Academy Award® Nominee Tom Wilkinson, the film harnesses the magical imagery of 3D Giant Screen, Full Dome, and Digital Cinema. Director Melissa Butts takes audiences soaring in “Space Junk 3D” – from the stunning depths of Meteor Crater to unprecedented view of our increasingly crowded orbits: 22,000 miles above earth. The visually explosive journey of discovery weighs the solutions aimed at restoring Earth’s orbits. Fueling the story are stunning time-lapse sequences and dynamic images that transport viewers by wrapping them in star fields and allowing audiences to witness massive collisions in space – both natural and man-made.

For Splice’s Carl Jacobs, the challenge presented by “Space Junk 3D” was exciting. Not only was the scope of the film daunting because it was to be printed to dual strips of 70mm film for large screen IMAX® 3D, but also because of the size and volume of the film’s assets (25 terabytes of 4K image files), all of which needed to be managed, viewed and tracked frame by frame. “There were over 700,000 images created for this film and we pored over every single one of them in the course of the edit,” says Jacobs. Relying on Splice’s large SAN (Storage Area Network) and flexible workflows, Jacobs says he didn’t think twice about the enormous size of the files and large volume of assets. “I enjoy taking on challenging projects that have never been done before,” says the Editor. “And Splice’s infrastructure makes huge, complex projects like ‘Space Junk 3D’ look easy.”

Having known Director Melissa Butts for many years and having collaborated together on her successful film “3D Sun,” Butts and Jacobs enjoyed a seamless collaboration throughout editorial on “Space Junk 3D.” “Mellissa’s focus was on the film’s story and the high quality of the 3D,” notes Jacobs. “She brings a lot of 3D experience to the table, but also a lot of taste, which is refreshing, since 3D can be very gimmicky. She wanted this film to have strong, purposeful 3D elements. Splice became the place where her film lived, had a home. We converted Splice’s 14-seat theater into a screening and edit room. Melissa and Producer Kimberly Rowe would come back to Splice in between their international travels shooting elements for the film, decompress a little and screen the latest cut. They knew that all their film’s assets were safe at Splice. I like to think we were the calm eye in the center of the storm it takes to make a film of this scale.”

In addition to contributing offline editorial and being a digital hub for the film, Splice’s Lead Designer Brian Olson created the 3D end credits for “Space Junk 3D.” The final shot of the film features 3D visual effects created by Splice’s VFX team. Producer Lynn Anderson managed the creative process and the film’s assets at Splice.

“The Splice team was very instrumental to the success of the film. They provided a tremendous amount of flexibility which is key with a project of this magnitude,” says Director Melissa Butts. “It’s an enormous amount of data to manage and on top of that Carl kept his creative chops rolling!”

Butts and her team at Melrae Pictures worked with the National Center for Supercomputing Applications (NCSA) to create breathtaking, state-of-the-art, 3D visualizations from scientific data. Butts also consulted with NASA’s Orbital Debris Program on content for the film, which will be shown in science centers around the world. “Space Junk 3D” will have its Washington D.C. debut at the Environmental Film Festival in the Nation’s capital where it will be screened in the Smithsonian Institute’s National Museum for Natural History in March. To view the Behind the Scenes Mini Doc: http://spacejunk3d.com/makingvideo.html

“Space Junk 3D” is presented by Melrae Pictures, in association with Red Barn Productions. Produced by Melissa Butts and Kimberly Rowe. Written by Shane Colton and Michael Benson. Lead Visual Effects by Luke Ployhar. Original Music by Tom Hambleton, CAS, Edited by Carl Jacobs of Splice Here® with end credits by Splice Lead Designer Brian Olson. Director of Photography: Reed Smoot, ASC. Distributed globally by K2 Communications. The 38-minute film is available in both 3D and 2D, for Giant Screen and Digital Theaters.

A Case Study:

This past holiday season, the award-winning team at Splice crafted a unique and imaginative project for their 2011 Holiday E-card. The Splice team shot and produced a two-minute short that featured a unique twist on Santa’s delivery of Christmas gifts that brought holiday cheer to a crew of three in an intergalactic space station. In order to create the short, Splice relied on CINEMA 4D for visual effects, 3D modeling and advanced rendering to create a holiday short that was truly, out of this world.

The initial storyboard for the project was drawn together by Splice Creative Director Shannon Pettini. The project called for 90% CG and 10% actors shot on greenscreen. After reviewing the storyboards, the team knew they were under a tight schedule with compositing, tracking and rendering.
Splice Motion Graphic Designer, Andy Lefton’s adrenaline was on full blast when he found out about the project and that it would consist of stars, nebulas, spacecrafts, and all the other exciting Sci-Fi bells and whistles. Working together, the Splice team utilized CINEMA 4D’s built-in advanced rendering engine for all exterior shots using GI, while integrating Vray into the mix for most of his interior renderings. For motion tracking software, Lefton used SynthEyes, which integrated into CINEMA 4D easily. CINEMA 4D’s external compositing was a vital tool for the large amount of data tracking and 3D layers that needed to be extracted from CINEMA 4D in order to composite lighting elements and VFX layers in post-production. The software proved itself yet again and excelled as everything was done down to the wire. Both After Effects and Flame were used for compositing and the 3D Data was extracted from CINEMA 4D flawlessly.

“CINEMA 4D’s user interface is the best on the market, and I say this with experience,” concludes Lefton. “I’ve worked with other platforms and attempting to navigate between view ports, tools and attributes has always been a less-than-stellar experience when using other software.”

MAXON’S CINEMA 4D made Splice’s 2011 holiday video possible with no problems at all. The end product was a huge success and viewed by thousands around the world.

Creative Director: Shannon Pettini
Producer: Steve Fait
Director: Eric Howell

DP: John Burch
1st AC: Steve Speers
Grip/Electric: Scott Jolstad
Grip/Electric: Joe Vandenberg
Grip/Electric: David Pope
Hair/Makeup: Maureen McGavin
PA: Mitch Heil
PA: David Crowley
PA: Keith McGregor
Practical FX: David Weiberg, MNFX
Props: Gordon Smuder, MNFX
Storyboards: David Stephan
Stage Management: Red White

Editor: Kevin Russell
Art Director/CG Artist: Andy Lefton
VFX Supervisor/Artist: Mark Youngren
VFX Artist: Ben Watne
VFX Artist: Gino Zappia
Graphics: Brian Olson
Color: Alexis Van Hurkman
Sound: Fred Street, Kelly Pieklo, David J Russ
Compression/Delivery: Adam Betker

Captain: Tom Reiner
Communications Officer: Lily Duckler
First Mate: Steve Fait
Santa: Kipp Crawford

1) What do you regard as being the most important industry lesson or lessons learned by your company this past year?

2) What industry trends or developments were most significant in 2011?

Here is where you can see what Splice’s Clayton Condit had to say. Read the PDF.

Space Junk 3D, narrated by Academy Award Nominee Tom Wilkinson, is the first movie to explore the exponentially expanding ring of debris that threatens the safety of our planet’s orbits. Harnessing the magical imagery of 3D Giant Screen, Full Dome and Digital Theater, Director Melissa Butts takes us soaring – from the stunning depths of Meteor Crater to an unprecedented view of our increasingly crowded orbits, 22,000 miles above earth.

Director: Melissa Butts
Produced by: Melissa Butts, Kimberly Rowe
Executive Producers: Red Barn Productions
Written by: Shane Colton, Michael Benson
Story Consultants: Don Kessler (Ret. Senior Scientist for NASA’s Orbital Debris Program)
Director of Photography: Reed Smoot ASC
Lead Visual Effects: Luke Ployhar
Scientific Visualizations: National Center for Supercomputing Applications (NCSA) University of Texas at Austin
Original Music and Sound: Tom Hambleton C.A.S.
Editor: Carl Jacobs, Splice

Post Production Services: Splice Here®
Post Producer: Steve Fait
Colorist: Michael Sandness
Editor: Joe Martin
Flame Artist / Online: Mark Youngren
Graphics: Brian Olson
Sound Designer: Kelly Pieklo
Sound Mix: Kent Militzer

Airing on Sunday, April 8 on TPT/Channel 2 at Noon.
For more information visit:

http://www.reconstructionofasacarter.com/
http://www.itvs.org/films/reconstruction-of-asa-carter

Director: Marco Ricci
Director of Photography: Peter Olsen
Executive Producer: Laura Browder
Producer: Douglas Newman
Co-Producer: Michael Fix

Post Producer: Lynn Anderson
Colorist: Michael Sandness
Colorist Assist: Joanna Day Fuerst
Assistant Editor: Kevin Russell
Flame Artist / Online: Michael Sandness
Design / Graphics: Chris Averbeck, Kipp Crawford
3D Artist: Mike Hoium